THE NF-W YORKER election years. Geneva Irene was born Sep- tember the 28th, 1912, and she weighed nine and a half pounds. Velda Al veda was born September the 26th, 1 916, and she weighed nine pounds. Geneva Irene died November the 3rd, 1913, at Boise, Idaho, where we were visiting for a little time. One year, one month, and C six days old. Velda Alveda died June the 25th, 1943, at Mercy HospItal in Cedar Rapids. She had double pneumonia. She died at the age of twenty-six years, and left a baby of th i rte e n months. Seemed so sad to go so young, and so much to bve for \Vhen Velda died, I could hardly take my grief. That was a lot of sorrow for me in those days, as two years be- fore, in 1941, my hus- band had dropped dead with a heal t attack It happened about five Ininutes after We came into the house on a Sunday evening from church. I was all alone when Harve) died, and d flower shop about a half block from our house was all lit up. Before, I was wondering what the) were all lit up for, and Harvey he'd said it was probably because they were ll1aking flowers for a funeral. So a neighbor call1e over to stay with Harvey, as he had fallen on the floor and we had no phone, dnd I went down the street to USL the flower shop's phone. The ll1an in the flower shop said, "\Vho is your doctor?" and he said for ll1e to go back hOll1e and he would call the doctor, but he said Harvey ll1USt be dead. \''''hen the flower ll1an came to ll1Y house, he had the doctor and an undertaker friend with hill1, and I didn't think he need- ed to do this until he caIne first just with the doctor. As it happened, the undertaker would not touch Harvey till I got hIS Social Securit) card. As Harvey wasn't working, he didn't have it in his billfold, so I had to look for it, and this took me about a half an hour and I was so nervous that when I found it I just passed it Into the undertaker's hand without saying an}- thing. So the undel tdker and the flower c::...:. _ .,.""" i ... 'C"1. .c.. ..:. . . t-'. '-..... . . ll1an picked up Harvey's body and put it in a black bag and carried it out. Velda's husband ran a confectionery store down by the Iowa Theater, and after the undertaker was gone I went down there. My son, Lee, was living at Olin, Iowa, and I had quite a tilne getting in touch with him. \Vell, that was F'ebruary the 22nd, 1 941, and Velda died two years later, and the day Velda died Lee was at "A.namosa, Iowa, getting In the Arm). He left for the Arll1Y three weeks later, and I'm tell- ing you that with al1 the worry and sorrow ll1J hair tUI ned white. Lee was gone for three and a half ) Lars, but he was lucky and his life was spared. He returned to his wife, who he had married on June the 25th, 1935-the sall1e day that Velda died eight years later-and he was the only child I had left. Lee was ll1arried for thirty-four years this sumll1er, but no children. Still, I have one dear grand- child, Velda's son, George, and he was twenty-seven on May the 31st, 1969, and he is the only grandchild I have and the one I raised after his mother died. George is married, but no chil- dren, and they are married four years. I FORGOT to mention, when I was a girl on the farm at Cicero we raised chickens, ducks, and geese. 51 /1 ( '\...;. -', 7: -- /J. '., _ , ............ , -y;--= . ) '-,.......... -,.. - , ;..; , .... t;/ ) -iJ"f. . r, ".,' .*;.w :- . }1 "; ",' , ' "' ; j :", ...).,. ."" =-'" ' . ttiL J ' In the SUll1mer there were so many cyclones. The farll1ers' telephones had eigh t to ten fall1ilies on one line, and all the houses had kerosene lamps. \Vhen Harvey and I moved to town uff the farll1, electric lights soon came and everybody was so happy. Nowadays, I baby-sit five days a week, and I got TV. I'll1 a TV fan and I sure enjoy the stories. Cele- brated my sixty-third wedding anni- versary last July the 15 th, and not many make it that long, but you see I've been alone twenty-eight years. Still, I have the one son, Lee, and he is over sixty now and has been retired from the Post Office four years. They live a block from me, Lee and his wife, and I live alone. \Vell, it is P.M. now and has rained again ll10St all A.M. Another flood at \Vaterloo, as a special news report came over TV several till1es today and said prohably SOll1e people would have to be moving out of theÏI hOll1es. Sure is tough. I'm glad I don't live there. This is not a very good story of my life, but it is all true, and ll1Y famIly have al1 passed on except ll1) son and he is dear and precious to me. I don't know what I would do without hill1 and his wife. -MAE SMART